Thanks very much to Todd for the chance to audition this amp. I have sent it on to Mr. Chou.
Below are my comments, also to be added to my portable amp review:
Unlike many of the amps I review, there was no lack of reviews on the PMH. Based on what I had read, I expected it to sound tubier than it did. But there are some sonic attributes that can probably be ascribed to the tubes. Less happily, the tubes are also likely the reason that the chassis rings very audibly through the headphones if tapped. This is really a bummer for a portable amp. It means that while it is portable, care will have to be taken while listening not to bump it, or unwanted ringing will overlay the music.
Build Quality: A: Very attractive and sturdy chassis. I guess I won’t subtract here for that annoying pinging…
Treble: A-: The treble is reasonably clean, transparent, and neutral. As I expected the amp lacks a little top end extension and air, but not nearly as much as I thought it might. I don’t think the treble is a real problem, generally, unless you try to use it with dark sounding headphones.
Midrange: A+: WOW. Simply gorgeous. Cliché or not, I have to assume this is due to the tube impact. But the mids were musical, lush, detailed, clean, open, and very enjoyable. The amp’s strong suite, no doubt.
Bass: A-: Full, punch, and fat. Perhaps a little loose. Could have a little better depth. But it was very enjoyable nonetheless.
Neutrality: A-: More neutral than I expected. Aside from lacking the very frequency extremes, it is essentially neutral . In fact, I was surprised to find it more neutral than the Decware Zenhead, which went through the review process at the same time.
Soundstaging: A: Great depth and width, and a very palpable image. Excellent performance here.
Transparency: A-: Occasionally just a bit thick sounding, but generally very transparent.
The TTVJ PMH provides very good, and in some respect truly excellent sound. It’s generally well built. But it’s at the very top end of the price curve of portable headphone amps, and for my $450, for portable use, I’d prefer the iQube, which performs better overall and doesn’t have that very annoying pinging/ringing. It might be better to leave the tubes at home.
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